From the beginning, technology was meant to serve us. We create things, like social media, to make our lives better so we can have more control over the limited amount of time we have every day. But is social media actually improving our lives? Or have we become slaves to our own creation?

Take a moment and ask yourself: when was the last time you went a full day, from wake to sleep, without checking social media? If sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit disappeared tomorrow, would you feel empty and depressed? Has social media become an addiction for you?

Social media can be a good thing, of course, and I’m not saying you need to abandon social media for good. But too much of a good thing can absolutely be harmful.

The Nature of Social Media Addiction

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It all hinges on the chemical dopamine.

Contrary to popular belief, dopamine has nothing to do with pleasure. Rather, the dopamine system has more to do with anticipation and motivation. Dopamine makes you feel like you want something and shifts you into a reward-seeking mindset. This mindset compels you to act. When you act to satiate that desire, the brain releases endorphins, which are pleasurable and rewarding.

Unfortunately, some specific characteristics of social media can abuse our dopamine systems:

Instant gratification. When your brain enters its reward-seeking mindset, all you have to do is open up Reddit or send out a tweet and your brain will interpret that as having acted, thus releasing feelings of pleasure as a reward.

Incomplete gratification. Even though Reddit links and tweets feel rewarding, they are only slightly so. You are never fully satisfied, so you feel compelled to keep going back.

Unpredictable stimuli. The brain also releases dopamine when something unexpected happens. And since notifications and alerts are unpredictable, they trigger dopamine. That keeps you hooked.

Anticipation and conditioning. As you immerse yourself in dopamine-triggering stimuli, your brain begins to anticipate them even before they happen. This is why you sometimes feel “social media withdrawal” — a compulsive need to check social media if you’ve gone too long without any dopamine triggers.

All of this comes together in something called social media creep. Like most addictions, it takes hold of you long before you realize it even exists.

It starts with the creation of a Facebook account that you might check weekly. Then every five days. Every three days. Daily. You install the Facebook mobile app, and now you’re hit with notifications multiple times per hour. Your brain’s dopamine system strengthens, requiring more and more stimulation for less and less reward. Eventually you’re waking up in the middle of the night to check if you’ve received any new likes, messages, or follows.

The Benefits of a Social Media Detox

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Let’s say you are addicted to social media. So what? It isn’t harming anyone. You’re still getting good grades in school or completing all your work at the office. You’re taking care of yourself. It’s not like you’re addicted to cocaine or heroin, right?

And that’s true. All things considered, it’s one of the safest addictions you could have — nobody has ever died from it. But what about the quality of your life? Social media addiction could be harming you in ways you can’t quite see on the surface.

Social media sucks up time. A visit to Reddit can turn into two hours of mindless browsing. Checking Facebook or Twitter may only take a few minutes, but if you check several times an hour, that can add up to a lot of wasted time. What if you spent that time on something else, like a creative hobby, hiking a trail, or personal growth?

A social media detox can get you away from all of these negatives. Note that a detox doesn’t have to be permanent — it just has to be long enough to rewire your brain and break you out of the endless dopamine cycle. You can always come back later.

How to Do a Proper Social Media Detox

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Starting a detox is easy. The hard part is sticking with it.

Despite the involvement of dopamine, social media addiction is a psychological addiction (in the same vein as video game addiction). Whereas substance-related addictions sometimes need gradual weaning due to issues of physical withdrawal, psychological ones are best dealt with using cold-turkey tactics.

In short, you need to stop rewarding your current dopamine triggers so that your brain can return to normal. You can’t do this if you’re feeding your appetite here and there. Plus, you’re more likely to spiral back into addiction with little hits. Here are the simple steps to a true social media detox:

Uninstall all social media apps. This will eliminate all of those notifications and alerts that play such a crucial role in social media addiction. And you won’t be as likely to pop one of those apps open in moments of boredom or stillness.

How long should the detox last? While studies are still sparse on this, most experts agree that it takes approximately three months (or 100 days) for dopamine levels to return to normal. It may take longer depending on how long and how intensely you’ve been addicted, so don’t be surprised if it takes upwards of six months or even a year.

If you think addiction is a real possibility, it may be time to take a break. And while a detox doesn’t have to be forever, you may decide after a few months that a permanent leave from social media is the best thing for you — and that’s okay.

How do you feel about social media addiction? Have you ever detoxed? What steps do you take to ensure that it doesn’t control you? Share with us in the comments below!

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David

March 27, 2017 at 10:12 pm

More sites should have articles like this. Thanks for the look at the dopamine system. This is all really important. Making sure that in our search for "connectivity" we don't lose the magic of actually sharing space with other people.

I deleted all apps and account about 3 months ago and I am so much happier.
Thing is though, it's not actually social media that is the issue, it's NEWS!!!

My friends no longer post anything on social media, but if they do then it's a new item and a comment of how they hate a certain group of people. So facebook has just become a place for news addicts and those desperate for a hate opinion that they agree with. Complete self-deprecating spiral and the world has bought into.

Thing is, this means that I largely have no use for the internet other than buying things, which is another addiction entirely.

The internet is great if you have a purpose (buy something, read a sports report, book a service, order some food) but if you go on the internet WITHOUT a purpose, then THAT is what social media is. If we remove the element of going on the internet to waste time, then we will all feel much better

I cancelled my facebook account 6 months ago.
Having it open on my laptop all the time was, I realised, a soul destroying event.
I didn't miss it one bit.
I have since come back to FB with a new account and only use it as a tool, as so many web pages "require" a FB account to log.
I find this easier than giving an email address as I don't want spam.
I have the bare minimum of facebook friends and log on maybe one a week for 5 minutes to check any updates/requests...
Facebook is still an unnecessary evil for me to use as a log on tool.

Unless anyone has a better idea, in which case I will delete the damned thing straight away.